Mission of the Electronic Village Online

The EVO is a creation of TESOL's CALL IS. In this age of electronic communication it seemed a natural way to bring the issues of our profession to an international stage. Our goal is to allow learning anywhere, anytime, with as little expense as possible. Thus EVO moderators and trainers are all volunteers, and participants need only provide their own Internet access to take part in activities. For more on the history of the EVO, see the recent article by Hanson-Smith and Bauer-Ramanzani in TESL-EJ, 8 (2) : http://www-writing.berkeley.edu/TESL-EJ/ej30/int.html

Syllabus for the EVO Training Session: October 10- November 13, 2005

Week 1 – Oct. 10 to 16

1. Find your Yahoo ID in the MEMBERS list and check out your Yahoo Profile. If you need to create a Yahoo Profile, you want to click Edit. Be sure to click Save Changes when you finish.You need a Yahoo ID and a Yahoo Profile to access the group.

Be sure to go to the group online and try out all the areas: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EVO_Moderators

2. Make sure to set your options in our Yahoo Groups to receive messages or get a daily digest, so you'll know what the others wrote. To do that, click on Edit My Membership on the top right of our front page. Under Message Delivery, check either Individual Emails or Daily Digest. Click Save Changes at the bottom of the screen.

3. Introduce yourself to our EVO_Moderators Yahoo Group of trainers, coordinators, and moderators by sending an email message to EVO_Moderators@yahoogroups.com. Tell us a little about your online experiences and other personal/professional information you'd like to share. (An Introductions Webpage is under construction.)

4. Put your photo up in the PHOTOS area. (Notice our group is set NOT to allow attachments to e-mails, so don't send your photo as an attachment to a message.)

5. Read "Start-Up Info" and "Creating a Yahoo Group" in our FILES area. Start your Yahoo group if you feel like you're ready.

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Week 2 – Oct. 17 to 23

1. Read the article Be an Active and Participative Instructor at http://www.learningcircuits.org/2003/dec2003/hofmann.htm. It discusses how the instructor is the glue that holds together the other four factors (student motivation, useable technology, opportunities to collaborate and interact, and the program blend).

2.a. If you are a newbie, explain what you plan to do in your session to use these critical success factors. Try to think of one strategy for each category: motivation, tech tools, collaboration, syllabus.

2.b. If you are an "old hand," is there anything new in this article for you? How might these factors apply when participants are volunteers, not students? Send your ideas to the group as an e-mail message.

3. Definitely get your Yahoo group started. Invite your mentor(s) to have a look at it, and make suggestions as you go along. Feel free to ask questions.

4. Begin reading through File folder #3 Using Yahoo groups. Of particular interest are Settings, Adding Moderator, and files_and_folders.

5. Read the article on Netiquette under Files > Activities_EVO_2005 >

4. Suggestions. Consider putting it in the FILES area of your own group and including it in your reading assignments.

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Week 3 – Oct. 24 to 30

1. Read the article Stave Off These Seven Pitfalls of Distance Learning by Moises Sheinberg at
http://www.learningcircuits.org/2000/apr2000/apr2000_elearn.html

2. Keeping in mind that teachers are "idea rich and time poor," explain how you will try to avoid these pitfalls in your session. How can you best keep your group motivated and involved as the session progresses and other interests and responsibilities affect how much time participants can devote to a “free, noncredit” session? Send your ideas to the group as an email message. Be sure to respond to others; this is a discussion.

3. Continue building your Yahoo group. Make and upload a syllabus for your 6-week session. You could make folders for each week which contain the questions, assignments, or activities for that week.

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Week 4 – Oct. 31 to Nov. 6

1. All of you have been working on your Yahoo Group site for your session. Place your group's address into our LINKS area so that everyone can have a look (a folder will be designated). You're going live!

2. Send a message to our Yahoo Group to share your thoughts on how your session has progressed so far. Things you might include:

• Your accomplishments in getting your session ready
  
• Your frustrations with setting up a Yahoo Group or Moodle or getting anything else ready
  
• Any strengths and/or weaknesses of what you've prepared, but especially with reference to the criteria for interactive learning we have been discussing in weeks 3 & 4
• Visit others' groups and leave a message for them
  
• Any questions the rest of the moderators and coordinators can help you with

3. Be sure to share any questions or concerns with your mentor(s).

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Week 5 - Nov. 7 to 13

We are reaching the wrap-up point in our course, so please ask any questions NOW that you need to know. This group will stay up during the whole time period leading up to TESOL, so feel free to write to us with questions or comments as you work through your own sessions. Be sure to stay in touch with your mentor(s), who will be a part of your group in Jan-Feb also.

Your tasks for this week:

1. Please go to the Yahoo Group or Moodle sites of at least two of your colleagues in this course. The addresses should be clickable in our LINKS section. Make sure your own site is in the LINKS section!

2. Write up a short critique/analysis of one or more of these sites and send it in an e-mail to our group. You might include:

• How does the front page appeal to you? Any improvements you might suggest?
  
• Is there a syllabus in the FILES section. Is it easy to access?
  
• Does the work seem manageable in a 6-week span (considering group members may be doing the online course while working).
  
• How has (have) the moderator(s) provided for interactivity during the course?
  
• What kinds of LINKS are there? Are they all working? Will these be useful?
  
• Generally, what's the best part? what needs the most improvement in the coming month before courses start??

3. At the end of this week, you will be asked to write up a short evaluation of your experience with this online training group. This includes questions, such as: Have the assignments been useful? What parts would you change?

We'd appreciate your comments as we prepare for next year.